China resumes direct flights to DPRK after 6-year hiatus

Chinese flag carrier Air China resumed direct flights between Beijing and Pyongyang on Monday, ending a six-year suspension of services between the capitals of China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The restoration of the flight route between the two neighboring countries comes after two-way international passenger train services resumed on March 12. Both passenger flights and trains to the DPRK were suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The cross-border trains are currently running between Beijing and Pyongyang, and between Dandong, a northeastern Chinese border city in Liaoning Province, and Pyongyang.